Across the Universe by Beth Revis

Amy said goodbye to her old life 250 years ago, before being cryogenically frozen for a trip through space. She is a passenger of the Godspeed, destined to explore and populate a new world. She is supposed to wake up when the arrive...yet she is yanked from her frozen slumber fifty years early. Now she must navigate the society that has kept the Godspeed running all these centuries.

Elder has lived on the ship his entire life, and he has always known that he will be the next Eldest, the leader of the Godspeed. But when he meets Amy, the only other teenager on board, she forces him to question the Elder/Eldest rule, and the workings of the Godspeed itself.

Who is to be trusted? As more frozen passengers are in danger of being killed, Amy and Eldest must work together to unravel the mysteries and hidden history of the great ship before it's too late.

***

I LOVE LOVE LOVED this book. Across the Universe is told in alternating POV, and the jumps between Amy and Elder are absolutely perfect. For a good chunk of the book, Amy is still frozen, but she has thoughts - thoughts of her old life, dreams of the future - and they create remarkable characterization considering she's spending her time sealed in a box. Meanwhile, Elder's perspective reveals the state of the ship: after a rebellion several generations ago, an absolute ruler was installed to keep order. But there's more to his success than strong leadership, as Amy will force Elder to realize.

So there's the worldbuilding; there's the romance; there's the mystery and suspense of someone pulling the plug on Amy's fellow pilgrims. There's the Beatles reference. There's the gorgeous cover art. And there's Revis's beautiful writing. My goodness, I could not put this book down.

The final word: READ IT!!!